We Have an Upcycling Winner!

Were you following our recent upcycling contest? Back in the fall, we gave 10 people $25 each to create something for the backyard through recycling. We were impressed with the results, and recently put the creations up for a vote. And the winner is….

Brian Carlisle with his dustpan bird feeder (right). Brian wins $500 and top honors of being the Birds & Blooms Upcyling Champion!

Our runner-up is Melissa Will with her bubble birdbath, pictured below. She wins $300.

Congratulations to our winners, and thanks to the other creative minds that entered the contest. (You might see their creations in an upcoming issue of Birds & Blooms or online.) Thanks to everyone who voted. We really appreciate it. Here’s a full list of all our participants, in no particular order.

Did you post the pictures of all the submissions? Each link goes directly to a persons website or to their etsy shop, not to the photo of what they did. Why not put up the photos of what they submitted? I don’t have any desire to start wading through all those sites. too time consuming!

Would love to see a full instruction “how to” of the bubble bird bath in an upcoming issue of Birds and Blooms. Thank you for the great contest and the beautiful ideas. I simply love them all… but especially the bubble bird bath. Sincerely, Melanie Manthey

I was in a hospital waiting room and picked up a Birds and Blooms. I was reading about the Bluebirds I managed to write down the two web sites, the one for the North Amearican Blue Bird Society, and the other for the magazine, what I didn’t write down is what issue I was reading, can someone help me out ? I would like some ideas for nesting boxes and how to attract Blue Birds I have seen a few in the past but would love to some in residence here……….. Thank You

Someone asked in last edition of Birds and Blooms, “How do I keep fallen seed from feeder from growing?” My answer is stop it from falling to the ground by tying old window screens six inches or so below feeder with wire or heavy cord attached to feeder suspension point and to the four corners of the screen. I’ve been doing this for years giving the birds a chance to “double dip” at the dropped seeds caught by the screen! Some of the larger birds, Grackles and Doves in my zone, even have taken to picking seeds from the feeder lower holes and the screens.

In the latest edition of Birds and Blooms you didn’t say how to keep the starlings from taking over the Swallow condos. Mine is always visited by swallows in the Spring by they never stay but the Starling do! The condo is on a 12′ pole at the edge of a large hay field at the corner of the my vegetable garden.

I’ve had an official sized blue bird house mounted on a chain link fence facing a wide hay field for several years. only once did I had one roost in it but sadly there was a dead baby in it when I cleaned it out during the winter. The house’s rear is at my vegetable garden. Is that the reason I don’t have them attracted to it-too much activity? I only enter it a few times a week during the growing season and more when the tomatoes, peppers and kale are mature. Should I place the house on a taller pole mounted on the fence or further along the fence away from the garden away from the garden?